"I Never Saw
Such A Rum River, In My Life," Said My Blackfellow Charley.
The open forest was sometimes one large field of everlasting flowers with
bright yellow blossoms; whilst the scrub plains were thickly covered with
grasses and vervain.
Almost all the grasses of Liverpool Plains grow
here. Ironstone and quartz pebbles were strewed over the ground; and, in
the valley, fine-grained sandstone with layers of iron-ore cropped out.
Large fish were seen in the lagoons; but we only succeeded in catching
some small fish of the genus Gristes. Muscles continued to be frequent;
and we saw the gunyas of the natives everywhere, although no native made
his appearance.
It was here that I first met, growing on the scrubby hills, a species of
Bauhinia, either shrubby or a small shady tree, with spreading branches;
the pods are flat, of a blunt form, almost one inch in breadth, and from
three to four inches long. The Bricklow seems to prevent the growth of
almost all other vegetation, with the exception of a small shrub, with
linear lanceolate aromatic leaves. An Acacia, with long drooping, almost
terete leaves, grew along the river; and Crinums grew in patches amongst
the everlasting flowers, on a sandy soil. Our latitude, of the 9th
November, was 25 degrees 53 minutes 55 seconds; and that of the 10th, 25
degrees 47 minutes 55 seconds, at about eleven miles north-west from the
camp of the 8th November.
Until the 14th of November, we travelled down the Dawson. In order to
avoid the winding course of the river, and the scrub and thickets that
covered its valley, which rendered our progress very slow, we had
generally to keep to the ridges, which were more open. We several times
met with fine plains, which I called "Vervain Plains," as that plant grew
abundantly on them. They were surrounded with scrub, frequently sprinkled
with Bricklow groves, interspersed with the rich green of the Bauhinia,
and the strange forms of the Bottle-tree; which imparted to the scene a
very picturesque character. From one of these plains we obtained, for the
first time, a view of some well-defined ranges to the west-north-west.
The general course of the river, between the latitudes of 25 degrees 41
minutes 55 seconds and 25 degrees 37 minutes 12 seconds, was to the
northward; but, as it commenced to turn to the east, I was induced to
cross it, and to follow my former direction to the northwest. Between
those two latitudes, the river had commenced to run, which was not the
ease higher up, notwithstanding it was formed by long reaches of water,
upon which pelicans and ducks were abundant. Mr. Calvert and the black,
Charley, who had been sent back to one of our last camping places, had,
on returning, kept a little more to the north-east, and had seen a river
flowing to the northward, and a large creek; both of which, probably,
join the Dawson lower down.
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